Illinois governor jabs Perry's 'favorite subject'

Take it from Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, who on Sunday relayed his experience bunking with Gov. Rick Perry of Texas.

"There's quite a difference between Rick Perry and I," Quinn, a Democrat, told CNN chief political correspondent Candy Crowley on "State of the Union."

"We both went to Iraq and Afghanistan four years ago," he continued. "I was his roommate. For seven days I heard him talk about his favorite subject: Rick Perry."

The jab came as the two governors sparred over which state is better for businesses and jobs creation. Appearing ahead of Quinn, Perry, a Republican, argued the competition among states to attract industry went beyond the governors themselves.

"The fact is it's not about him and it's not about me," Perry said. "It's about the business climate in our respective states. And competition is good. I would suggest to you that when the Chicago Bulls come to San Antonio, they're not poaching jobs, or poaching wins, they're about competing. And sometimes we win, and sometimes we lose."

Perry has spent the past year aggressively courting firms in other states, touting Texas' business-friendly regulations and corporate tax structure.

"We have put a very, very competitive system in place. It's how we compete with each other," he said on CNN. "It's how America will be stronger, when these 50 states compete with each other and be laboratories of innovation."

But while Texas may appear to some business owners as an ideal place to set up shop, Quinn on Sunday challenged the Lone Star State's commitment to workers' quality of life.

"Texas has one of the worst poverty rates in the country," Quinn said, noting his own state's higher-than-average minimum wage. "They also have a situation of industrial accidents that are just unacceptable. We believe in worker safety laws."